The Groupama-FDJ team once again did all it could to fulfil its ambitions on Tuesday, in the very first mountain stage of the 111th Tour de France. Towards Valloire, through the climb of Sestrières, the Col de Montgenèvre and the Col du Galibier, David Gaudu, Romain Grégoire and Valentin Madouas all managed to make it to the front group after a fierce fight at the start. Unfortunately, the peloton and UAE Team Emirates immediately showed their intentions, and the breakaway was never able to go clear. David Gaudu was eventually caught eight kilometres from the summit of Galibier, then Tadej Pogacar flew to victory.
The most severe gradients are yet to come, but this Tuesday, the peloton still had much to do on stage four of the Tour from Pinerolo to Valloire. The distance was certainly “only” 140 kilometres, but almost 4000 metres were to be climbed throughout the day, with the endless rolling climb towards Sestriere (39 km at 3.7%), the Col de Montgenèvre (8 km at 6.3%) and the iconic Col du Galibier from the Lautaret’s side (23 km at 5%). A heavy menu was therefore looming on this fourth day of racing, but the Groupama-FDJ team did have an appetite for it, just like the last few days. “It was important to be at the front today,” said Benoît Vaugrenard. “We didn’t really know how things were going to play out within the peloton, so we had to go in the breakaway.” His riders properly followed the instructions, Kevin Geniets spent a few minutes in the lead, but it was only after thirty kilometres that the right move was established. “We followed the plan that we had established, which was to have the maximum number of riders possible in the break,” said Valentin Madouas, who was wearing the best climber’s jersey, and who found himself with Romain Grégoire and David Gaudu up front. “There were seventeen riders with three from our team, it was perfect,” said Benoît. “But then, it all didn’t depend on us.”
“We need to keep racing like this to come away with a stage win”, Valentin Madouas
The peloton indeed did not ease off, and the gap did not increase much. “We realized early on that UAE Team Emirates wanted to win the stage, and it became a little complicated for us,” said Benoît. Valentin Madouas still grabbed a few points on the day’s first two summits, but the peloton was still very close to the leading men at the bottom of the Galibier. Even before the most difficult slopes, the gap reduced to one minute, and David Gaudu tried to bring the break as far as possible with Oier Lazkano. However, they couldn’t hold off the bunch. Romain Grégoire and Valentin Madouas were caught about ten kilometers from the summit, and David Gaudu a few moments later. “They let us at two minutes all day,” said the former French champion. “It was impossible to make a difference. We knew it was over and that we shouldn’t spend too much energy. It’s still a very good day. We were active as we wanted to be, and we need to keep racing like this to come away with a stage win.” “The riders showed great spirit,” added Benoît. “Everyone is riding well, we will continue like this, and we’ll target the stages well to snatch one. David also gained confidence by being in front today. When the break goes after such a big fight, there is no luck: those in front were in good shape. This shows that he recovered well, and we saw at the end that he was still going well. It’s a good sign for him going forward”.
“If we have to try fifteen times out of the twenty-one stages, we will do it”, David Gaudu
Once caught, the Groupama-FDJ’s men finished at their own pace, and the escaped trio eventually joined the line eleven minutes after Tadej Pogacar, who finished off the work of his teammates. “It’s a place full of emotions for me, which means a lot because I spent a lot of time there growing up,” David said. “So I had ticked this finish and I wanted to do well. We know that we cannot fight against Pogacar and the others for victory. The goal was to take the breakaway, but the peloton did not give us much room. It’s part of the game and we’ll try again. If we have to try fifteen times out of the twenty-one stages, we will do it. We won’t give up. That’s the watchword on this Tour. We’ve always had someone in breakaways since the start. The team will continue on this path, we all want to do well, and I am personally happy because I felt the legs come back a bit today. It’s positive for the future, and we will now try to recover on the flat stages.” “On all the difficult stages where there will be opportunities, the goal will be to be at the front,” concluded Valentin. “We have a very good team, and it will pay off, that’s for sure.” They already look forward to the weekend, while Stefan Küng is eyeing Friday’s time trial.
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